Piano



Sept. 28, 1937.

P. VAN DoMMELEN PIANO Filed March l2, 1936 Patented Sept. 28, 1937 UNITED STATES PIANO Peter Van Dommelen7 Holland, Mich., assignor to Gulbransen Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application March 12, 1936, Serial No. 68,487

7 Claims.

This invention relates to pianos, and has to do with the music desks thereof for supporting sheet music.

Heretofore, there have been two conventional types of pianos upon the market, being generally known as the upright or vertical piano, and the grand piano. Each of these pianos ernployed a sepa-rate and distinct type of music desk. In the upright piano, the shelf thereof was disposed only a relatively short distance above the keyboard and the piano case extended for a considerable distance above the shelf. The piano case was also of considerable depth and the shelf formed, in effect, only a relatively narrow ledge extending the full width of the piano. Above the shelf, the piano case was closed by a panel, which extended for substantially the full height and width of the case. This panel, comprising the music desk of the piano, was pivoted with res ect 'to the case and, at its lower edge, immediately above the shelf, was provided with a ledge for supporting sheet music. Means interconnected with the cover for the keyboard and with the panel served to pivot the panel with respect to the case upon opening of the cover. This inclined the panel upwardly and rearwardly with respect to the case, so that sheet music supported upon the ledge would not fall forwardly. In such type of music desk, the music was disposed immediately before the player and it could be easily viewed. Further, in addition to its function as a music desk, the panel served as a tone control for the piano, pivoting of the panel serving to vent the piano case to atmosphere so that objectionable vibrations would not be set up in the piano` case and thereby destroy the quality of tone.

In the grand piano, the shelf was disposed an appreciable distance above the keyboard and such shelf was of considerable depth. No portion of the piano case extended above the shelf, and such piano, therefore, required a separate and cstinct type of music desk, This music desk has generally consisted of a substantially rectangularly shaped board, which was cut and ornamented in any appropriate or desired manner. Due to the height and depth of the shelf, this board was generally positioned on the forward edge thereof so that the music supported thereby could be easily viewed. The board also had a rearward inclination with respect to the shelf for the purpose hereinbefore specified. The music desk of .this type of piano was not operable to control the tone thereof.

Within the past year or so, however, a new design of piano has been placed upon the market. This piano is coming to be known as the vertical gran piano and, while itis built along the lines of the upright piano, it also incorporates features of the grand piano. The shelf of the piano is disposed an appreciable distance above the keyboard, as in the grand piano, and it is provided with a piano case similar to that employed in the upright pianos. The case of the instant piano is, however, of considerably less depth than the case of the upright piano, and it extends only a relatively short distance above sheif. The result is that the shelf has a height and depth cornparaole to that of 'the gran-d piano. For this reason, the music desk employed with the instant piano, up 'to the present time, has been the same as that employed upon the grand piano, namely, the rearwardly inclined board positioned adjacent the forward edge of the shelf.

Broadly, the principal object of the present invention resides in providing a piano of the instant design with a new and improved form of music desk,

More specifically, the invention contemplates providing a piano of the instant design with a music desk in the form of a. pivoted panel, and disposing such panel adjacent the forward edge of the shelf so that music supported thereby can easily be viewed, said panel also functioning as a` means for controlling the tone of the piano.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure l a fragmentary perspective view of a piano embodying the principles of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the piano of Figure l, with the cover of the piano case removed, partly broken away;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along the line 3 3 of Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a perspective View of one of the hinges for the pivoted panel.

Referring now in detail to the drawing, pianos of the instant design, with which my novel music desk is adapted to be employed, comprise a keyboard 5 and a shelf 6. This shelf, as shown, is disposed an appreciable distance above the keyboard and is of considerable depth. The upper portion of the piano case, designated generally at l, extends above the shelf 6 for only a relatively short distance, and it is also comparatively narrow in depth. Generally, the piano case is entirely disposed a slight distance behind the longitudinal center line of the shelf. y

In the instant invention, the case l comprises the posts or panels 8 and 9, which form the sides of the case. The back of the case is closed by a suitable panel (not shown), while the front of the case is closed by three separate and distinct longitudinally extending panels I d, II and I2. Panels ill and I2 seat upon shelf 6, and are disposed longitudinally thereof and at right angles to posts or panels 8 and 9. At their outer ends, the panels are secured to posts 8 and 9 by the tongue and groove connection I3, while at their inner ends, the panels are secured to posts Iii and I5, respectively, as by the tongue and groove connections IS. Panels i!) and I2 are equal in length and they extend inwardly from posts 8 and 9 for only a relatively short distance. The depth of posts 8 and S is such that panels I@ and I2 will be disposed upon shelf 5 slightly back of the longitudinal axis thereof. Posts Iii and I5 may be secured to shelf 6 in any suitable or preferred manner.

As shown, panel II is disposed parallel to but forwardly of panels Ill and i2 by means of the panels il and I8. These latter panels also seat on shelf 6 and extend outwardly from posts I and I5 at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the shelf. At their inner ends, panels Il and I8 are secured to posts I li and i5, respectively, by the tongue and groove connections i9, while at their outer ends they are secured to posts 223 and 2i, respectively, as by the tongue and groove connections 22. Posts 2li and 2i may be secured to shelf 6 in any suitable or preferred manner, and the length of panels Il and I8 is such that the posts 28 and 2l will be disposed adjacent the front edge 23 of shelf 5. As the panels i@ and i2 are of relatively short length, the posts 2t and 2l will dene an opening of appreciable width, and this opening is adapted to be closed by panel II. Preferably panels It), Il and I2 are so proportioned that the length of panel I I, and consequently the opening defined by posts 2d and ZI, will be slightly greater than the combined lengths of panels Ii) and I2.

Panel Il is mounted upon posts 2@ and ZI for pivotal movement with rrespect thereto, as by means of the hinges designated generally at 26. Each of these hinges comprises a pair of clamping plates 21 and 28. Plate 2l is merely a flat and substantially square metal plate, while plate 2S is similar to plate 2l, except that it is provided with a horizontally extending portion 29, formed centrally thereof. Plate 28 is adapted to be superposed upon plate 2l, and the arcuate portion A2&9 of plate 28 forms a housing Sil with the plate 2l.

A pair of these plates 2l' and 28 are mounted adjacent the upper ends of each of the posts 2li and 2l, as indicated at 32. Likewise, a pair of plates 2l and 28 are mounted upon each of the upper corners of panel II, as indicated at 33. In each case, plate 2l is adapted to abut the post or panel upon which the plates are mounted, and screws 3d passing through aligned openings 35 in the plates serve to secure them to their respective post or panel. The adjacent pairs of plates, indicated at 32-33, have their bores 3B disposed in axial alignment with each other, and a pivot pin or rod 36 disposed in the bores is adapted to pivotally mount the panel I l on posts 2i] and 2I. Preferably, the pairs of plates 2l and 28 on posts 2i] and 2l are tightly clamped about pin 36, while plates 2l and 28 on panel Il merely have a friction iit with the pin, thereby permitting the plates to be rotated about the pin and to be held in any adjusted position.

Panel Ii forms the music desk of the piano and, when the top 3l of the case is held in raised position by the support the panel may have its lower end swung outwardly and upwardly as indicated in dotted lines in Figure 3. Support 3&3, it will be observed, has one end thereof mounted upon a pivot Il projecting from the inner surface of panel i8. Upward pivotal movement of said support is limited by a pin while downward pivotal movement of said support is limited by a pin 43, both of these pins also being secured to the inner surface of panel lil and projecting therefrom into the path of movement of support 38. Access may be had to said support for operation thereof by merely raising cover 3i sufciently to permit the hand of the operator to be inserted into the case back of panels lI or I8, whereupon the support may be grasped and manually moved from its full line position to its dotted line position, as shown in Figure 3, or vice Versa. The location of pivot il upon panel i8 is such that, when the support 33 is in the dotted line position shown in Figure 3, the free end of the support will project above panel I I, thereby holding cover 3i out of contact with such panel. Stops tu, secured to the lower outer edges of panels Il and Iii, serve to limit inward movement or" the panel I i with respect to the posts 2i) and 2l, A ledge or moulding l, secured to the shelf 6 adjacent the front edge 23 thereof, serves to prevent music from sliding olf of the shelf, while when panel II is inclined rearwardly it provides a support for the music and prevents it from falling forwardly. Further, by reason of the forwardly projected panel Il, the music Will be disposed adjacent the front of the shelf and may be easily viewed by the player. In addition to its function of supporting music, the panel Il serves to vent the piano case to atmosphere, and to thereby prevent any objectionable vibrations being set up in the piano case and spoiling the quality of the tone.

While there is herein shown and described a preferredr embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that minor changes in construction, combination and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

l. A piano of the class described comprising a shelf, a piano case disposed at the rear of said shelf, said case extending above said shelf for a relatively short distance and being of relatively narrow depth, and means supported on said shelf and disposed forwardly of said case and providing a music desk for the piano.

2. A piano of the class described comprising a shelf, a piano case disposed at the rear of said shelf, said case extending above said shelf for a relatively short distance and being of relatively narrow depth, and means supported on said shelf and disposed forwardly of said case and providing a music desk for the piano, said means including a panel carried by said case for pivotal movement with respect thereto.

k3. A piano or" the class described comprising a keyboard, a shelf disposed an appreciable distance above said key board, and a piano case including a front wall projecting above said Y i shelf, said front wall comprising a plurality of panels with certain of said panels being disposed wholly in rear of the longitudinal axis of said shelf, and another of said panels being disposed forwardly of said rst named panels and at a point adjacent the front edge of said shelf to provide a music desk for the piano.

4. A piano of the class described comprising a shelf, a piano case comprising side and back walls extending above said shelf adjacent the rear edge thereof, and means closing the front of said case comprising a panel secured at its outer end in each of said side walls and extending inwardly therefrom longitudinally of said shelf, said panels being of relatively short length and defining an opening therebetween centrally of said case, posts mounted upon said shelf and securing the inner ends of said panels thereto, means closing the opening between said panels, and means secured to said posts and positioning said last-named means adjacent the front edge of said shelf.

5. A piano of the class described comprising a shelf, a piano case comprising side and back walls extending above said shelf adjacent the rear edge thereof, means closing the front of said case comprising a panel secured at its outer end in each of said side walls and extending inwardly therefrom longitudinally of said shelf, said panels being of relatively short length and defining an opening therebetween centrally of said case, posts mounted upon said shelf and securing the inner ends of said panels thereto, a panel closing said opening, means secured to said posts and positioning said panel adjacent the front edge of said shelf, and means pivotally mounting said panel on said last-named means.

6. A piano of the class described comprising a shelf, a piano case comprising side and back walls extending above said shelf, and means closing the front of said case comprising a panel secured at its outer end in each of said side walls and extending inwardly therefrom longitudinally of said shelf, said panels being of relatively short length and defining an opening therebetween centrally of said case, posts mounted upon said shelf and securing the inner ends of said panel thereto, a central panel closing said opening, panels secured to each of said posts and extending outwardly therefrom transversely of said shelf, and means pivotally mounting said central panel upon said last-named panels.

7. A piano of the class described comprising a shelf, a piano case comprising side and back walls extending above said shelf adjacent the rear edge thereof, and means closing the front of said case comprising a panel secured at its outer end in each of said side walls and extending inwardly therefrom longitudinally of said shelf, said panels being of relatively short length and defining an opening therebetween centrally of said case, posts mounted upon said shelf and securing the inner ends of said panels thereto, panels secured to said posts and extending outwardly therefrom transversely of said case, posts disposed on said shelf adjacent the front edge thereof and securing the outer edges of said transverse panels to said shelf, a central panel disposed between said posts, and means pivotally securing said central panel to said latter posts.

PETER VAN DOMMELEN. 

